LAS News Archives

Oregon "Paycheck Protection" Measure Could Harm Nonprofit Advocacy Rights (10/21/98). On November 3, Oregon citizens will vote on Ballot Measure 59. This measure, which is aimed at limiting the use of union dues for political purposes, could also significantly restrict the advocacy rights of certain nonprofits -- those that receive funds through charitable giving campaigns from public employees that are implemented through state payroll deduction plans. (National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy analysis)

Block Grant Amendment Raises Advocacy Concerns (8/20/98).An Amendment to H.R. 4271, the Community Services Block Grant reauthorization, raises serious concerns for charities.  The amendment, offered by Reps. Mark Souder (R-IN) and Bobby Scott (D-VA), would allow states to use a portion of their CSBG funds to set up and administer a charitable tax credit -- but only for charities that predominantly serve the poor and severely restrict their advocacy activity.

The Various Forms of Paycheck Protection and their Impact on Nonprofits (6/24/98).Congressional campaign finance reform debate is ongoing. An attack on nonprofits could be upon us once again with little warning. While each proposal deserves careful analysis, the general trend is that these proposals will limit the ability of nonprofits to advocate on public policy matters.

McIntosh Attacks First Amendment Rights of Nonprofit Employees (6/9/98)Representative David McIntosh (R-Ind.) has proposed an amendment, "Political Activities of Government Employees," to be offered during the upcoming debate in the House over campaign finance reform legislation that would, once again, restrict the free speech rights of individuals employed by any organization that receives Federal funds.

California Proposition 226 Loses (6/3/98) California's Proposition 226, which would have impacted nonprofit advocacy rights, lost by a 54 to 46 percent margin in balloting on June 2.

Blunt Amendment Pulled from Campaign Finance Debate (6/3/98) Rep. Roy Blunt (R-MO) has withdrawn from consideration his Istook-like amendment that would have harmed nonprofit advocacy.

Nonprofits under attack! Istook anti-advocacy language reintroduced (5/27/98). Rep. Roy Blunt (R-MO) has filed an amendment to the campaign finance reform legislation which is virtually identical to the original 1995 Istook anti-advocacy amendment that would have silenced America's charities.
Amendment text
OMB Watch analysis
Get Involved! See Action alert.

Joint LAS-NCRP Report Indicates Nonprofits Affected by Proposition 226 (5/15/98). A report prepared by the Let America Speak! Coalition and the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy indicates that California's Proposition 226 would impact payroll deductions for charitable giving.

Anti-Advocacy Provision Removed from Campaign Finance Reform Bill. (Tue, 3/31/98) Bowing to pressure from nonprofits across the country, Congress removed language fromcampaign finance reform legislation that would have directly affected nonprofits' ability to engage in advocacy.

H.R. 3485 Update (Th 3/26/98, 6:00pm): Late yesterday the House Rules Committee failed to send H.R. 3485 to the floor for a vote as Republicans, overwhelmed by the outpouring of opposition to the bill's Title I restrictions on nonprofits, sat in disarray over the bill. The bill could bypass the Rules Committee and go directly to the floor, but then it would require a 2/3 majority for passage, which currently seems unlikely.

H.R. 3485, the Campaign Reform and Election Integrity Act, would directly impact nonprofits' ability to advocate for or against--or even educate the public about--federal laws and regulations. See the OMB Watch analysis for more details about the bill's potential impact on nonprofits.

Sign-On Letter to Oppose Nonprofit Anti-Advocacy Provision: H.R. 3485, the Campaign Reform and Election Integrity Act, sponsored by Rep. Bill Thomas (R-CA), will soon be considered by the full House. Title I of the bill would significantly restrict the ability of nonprofits to engage in public policy matters, such as commenting on federal regulations or educating the public about federal laws and regulations. (3/24/98)

ACTION ALERT: Oppose the Nonprofit Anti-Advocacy Provision that is Part of Campaign Finance Bill: H.R. 3485, the Campaign Reform and Election Integrity Act, which would directly impact nonprofits' ability to advocate for or against--or even educate the public about--federal laws and regulations, passed the House Oversight Committee and is expected to go to the House floor as early as March 26th. The bill, introduced by House Oversight Committee Chair Bill Thomas (R-CA), includes a provision that requires nonprofit organizations to annually ask for consent from their members to use their funds for "political activity." Click here for TARGET LIST of Members of Congress whose votes may be key to defeating the ant-advocacy provisions in H.R. 3485 (3/20/98)

Public Comments Sought on Charitable Contribution Bills: The House of Representatives is currently considering two billsthat would require corporations and investment funds registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to disclose to stockholders charitable contributions to nonprofits and allow shareholder participation in the designation of charitable contributions. The SEC is accepting public comment on these bills until November 12, 1997. (11/5/97)

House Ways & Means Oversight Subcommittee Postpones Hearings on Charities: The on-again, off-again hearings targeting how charities spend their money on legislative activities appear to have been postponed indefinitely. Representative Nancy Johnson (R-CT), Chair of the House Ways & Means Oversight Subcommittee had planned to address the issue of how charities report their "self-defense" lobbying. (August 30, 1997)

Campaign Finance Investigation Targets Nonprofits: According to an article that appeared in The New York Times on Aug. 13, 1997, the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee has subpoenaed 26 nonprofit organizations as part of its investigation of alleged campaign abuses. (August 13, 1997)

Istook Does Not Offer Anti-Charity Amendment: The Treasury-Postal Appropriations bill passed the full Committee, and Rep. Istook (R-OK) did not introduce his threatened amendment that would significantly change the type of information collected about nonprofit grantees and subgrantees. (July 31, 1997)

Istook to Offer Anti-Charity Amendment to Treasury-Postal Appropriations Bill: Rep. Ernest Istook (R-OK) has signaled that he will introduce an amendment to the Treasury-Postal Appropriations bill that would significantly change the type of information collected about nonprofit grantees and subgrantees. (July 28, 1997)

Son of Istook Amendment Stopped: Realizing that he didn't have the votes, Rep. Ernest Istook did NOT offer his Son of Istook amendment today during the mark-up of the Labor, HHS, Education Appropriations bill. This is a major victory for charities across the country. (July 22, 1997)

Istook to Offer Another Amendment Attacking Charities: Rep. Ernest Istook (R-OK) is planning to offer an amendment to the FY 1998 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill to prohibit use of federal funds for "any activity designed to influence legislation or appropriations pending before the Congress, any State legislature, or A LEGISLATIVE BODY OF ANY POLITICAL SUBDIVISION OF A STATE." (emphasis added) (July 16, 1997)

Anti-Lobbying/Anti-Legal Action Provision in the Juvenile Crime Bill: The Violent and Repeat Juvenile Offender Act (S. 10), sponsored by Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT), contains a provision that would unnecessarily restrict the use of federal funds for lobbying and legal actions. (June 18, 1997)

Bill Introduced Amending Lobby Disclosure Act: The purpose of the bill is to prevent any organization that is affiliated with a 501(c)(4) that lobbies from receiving federal funds. (February 21, 1997)

Section 503 Limits on Federal and State Level Advocacy Are Not New: The text of the section recently became an issue when the Office of the General Counsel at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued a memorandum Oct. 24, 1996, stating that the new language "expands the bar [on the use of appropriated funds for certain lobbying activities] to include such efforts regarding legislation pending before state legislatures." (February 11, 1997)

Section 507 Retained In President's Budget: Section 507, which would reguire organizations receiving federal grant money under the bill to disclose the amount of federal funding they receive on virtually all outgoing communications, was retained in the president's FY 98 budget (February 6, 1997).

Rule Affects Nonprofit Advocacy: Under a new House rule, witnesses at congressional hearings will be required to include on their written statements the amount and source of federal funding their group receives during the current and past two fiscal years. (January 7, 1997)

Congresswoman Questions Tax Breaks for Nonprofits: Tax breaks granted to nonprofits could shift dramatically in the upcoming Congress if ideas being floated by Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-CT),/ who recently won reelection, are pushed through and signed into law. (October 17, 1996)

Section 507 Signed into Law: It's official. Section 507, which would reguire organizations receiving federal grant money under the bill to disclose the amount of federal funding they receive on virtually all outgoing communications, was signed into law by the president as part of the Continuing Resolution. (September 30, 1996)

GOP Platform Endorses Istook Language: In an apparent gesture to the Let America Speak Coalition, which has successfully opposed the harsh, anti-advocacy Istook amendment for the past year, the platform dubs the proposal the "Let America Know" initiative. (August 12, 1996)

The Nonprofit Labeling Provision Close, But No Cigar: The act, which would have required surgeon-general-like disclaimers on all materials published by nonprofits, was dropped at the last minute. (July 30, 1996)

Bill Offers Tax Credit But Excludes Advocacy Groups: The Talent-Watts American Community Renewal Act offers a tax credit for charitable organizations that serve the poor, but shuns those that engage in advocacy. (July 30, 1996)

McIntosh Readies For Next Year's Fight: While most of the discussion during a hearing staged by Rep. David McIntosh (R-IN) was devoted to larger grant-management issues, it is clear that one of its purposes was rebuilding a consensus to curtail advocacy by grant-receiving nonprofits. (July 30, 1996)

Istook Suffers Setback (April 25,1996)

The Core Elements of Anti-Advocacy Proposals During the 104th Congress(February 22, 1996)

Related Topics

• Post-Election Outlook for Nonprofit Postal Rate Changes: For those nonprofits that rely upon the preferred postal rate to raise funds, educate constituents or send publications, it looks as though we must get ready to stay on our toes. (November 15, 1996)
• Colorado Initiative Fails; Property Tax Exemption for Nonprofits Preserved : Colorado voters delivered an emphatic statement of support for their nonprofit agencies and religious groups by defeating Amendment 11 last Tuesday by an overwhelming margin of 83% to 17%. (November 15, 1996)
• Major Devolution Bill (S. 88) is Dead: Sen. Mark Hatfield smacked into surprising opposition during the last days of the 104th Congress when he tried to attach his Local Empowerment and Flexibility Act to the Continuing Resolution.(September 30, 1996)
• Agency Anti-Lobbying Act On Hold: Preoccupied with bashing President Clinton, Rep. Bill Clinger (R-PA) has backed off his attempt to pass the Federal Agency Anti-Lobbying Act, which, if enacted, would severely limit the flow of information from government agencies to the public. (August 28, 1996)
  

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